Bridle



sept. 22,l 1936.

A. E. TILBURN BRIDLE Filed Sept. 27, 1934 Patented Sept. 22, 193.6

-PATENTfoFFlcE BRIDLEv -Albert Edward ,'Iilburn, St. K ilda, Victoria, Aus- 1 tralia, assigner to Bitless- Bridles Proprietary Limited, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia,"a,corporation'` of Victoria, Australia Application September'l, 1934, Serial.No."745-,fr803l Y l j In Australia October I751933V .1

1 claim. (ci. 54;-78)

'I'his invention Yrelates to bridles for the con-.- trol inclusive of guidance of'horses andother animals in ridingor driving, and it has been `devised morevparticularly'` with the object offdis- 5 pensing with the usual inhumane andmore `or less harmful metal )bit extending transversely through an animals mouth, which bit is apt to chafe and cause injuryjto the animal and restrict the natural movementsof the tongue and other mouth parts.

In the present invention the disadvantages of transversely extending bitsjin general'use are avoided, and independent controlling elements which are not connected by bits 'orcross-pieces within the mouth are applied to oppositesides of a horses mouth. The independent controlling elementsare formed aslhooked members, which are respectively engaged with the opposite ends of the animals mouth. The bends of the hooked members are placed at the corners or inner ends of the animals mouth, and one limb of each hooked member (hereinafter termed the inner limb) extends upwardly and inwardly within the animals mouth and lies between the outer side of the molar teeth and the inner side of the adjoining cheek, while the outer limb of each of said hooked members lies along the outer side of the cheek and is secured to the cheek straps of the headstall.

3o The hooked control members may be of rigid constructions so that the inner and outer limbs thereof are in invariable spaced relation, or alternatively the hooked members may be of ilexible construction to permit relative bending of the inner and outer limbs thereof.

limbs of said control members may be made of various lengths in accordance with the requirements of diiferent animals, and their ends are provided with means for attachment of a rein ring or a cheek strap. Moreover, the outer limbsI of said control members may be provided with means for attachment of a nose band and/or a chin strap. The inner limbs of said control members may also be made of different lengths to suit the mouths of various animals and they may be enlarged or flattened for portions of their lengths or otherwise appropriately shaped. Furthermore, the inner limbs of the said control members may be provided with coverings of rubber or other soft or relatively soft material, and

The outer v the inner sides ofthe outer-limbs of said memberscontacting with the horses cheeks may be padded. In :some cases, the soft coverings may be extendedlaroundvthe bends of the hooked control members and encase the outer `limbsas `5` Well as .the inner limbs thereof. Again, the inner and :outer limbs of the said hooked control members may have coverings of different materials' "I'hus,for instance, the inner klimb. may befencas'edin rubber'while. the outer liinbl may 10 be provided with-a leathercovering.

In orderthat vthe inventionmay be better understood reference will now be had -to the accompanying drawing illustrating preferred formsxof the invention. i. 15',

' Fig. lis a perspectivev view showing the invention on a horses head.` Fig. 2 is a sectional plan of portion of a horses head showing the lower jaw and the hooked control members applied at the corners of the mouth. 2O

Fig. 3 is a perspective view of one of the hooked control members.

Figs. 4, 5 and 6 are fragmentary views of modified details in the construction of the hooked control members. 25

In these views, I indicates the headstall of a bridle which may be made, as usua1,'of leather and is provided with a forehead strap 2, throat latch 3 and cheek-straps 4.

Supported by the cheek straps 4 and disposed 30 in extended alignment therewith are hookshapedcontrol members 5 which are of metal or other sufficiently strong material. The outer limb 6 of each control member 5 isformed with an eye 1 in which ismounted a ring 8 whereby 35 the control member is connected with the relative cheek strap 4. The other or inner limb 9 of the control member 5 is located on the inner side of the cheek strap 4, and the inner and outer limbs 6 and 9 are so spaced from each other 40 that when the said control member is engaged with a corner of a horses mouth as shown in Fig. 2, the animals cheek l is freely accommodated between them.

The outer limbs 6 of the said hook-shaped con- 45 trol members 5 may be encased in leather or like flexible material, and the leather or like covering may be sewn or otherwise secured to the said outer limbs. Moreover, the inner sides of the outer limbs (or the coverings thereon) which contact 50 with the animals cheeks may be lined with material such as, for example, fur or felt.

The inner limbs 9 and the bends of the control members 5 may be enclosed in rubber casings of suitable thickness to provide the requisite softness for the parts of said members in contact With the mouth.

The outer limbs 6 of the control members 5 may be provided with slots I I through which may be passed a nose band I2 and a chin strap I3, see Fig. 1.

In cases Where it is desirable to provide the hook-shaped control members 5 with greater freedom of movement in order that they may readily conform with the movements of a horses head,

soft

each of V'said members may be pivotally connected K by a hinge pin I4 to an extension bar I5, see Fig. 4,

or by a swivel pin Ida to 'Ha/boss I6 as shown in Fig. 5. The extension barl I5 andthe boss IISl are` formed with the eye 'I through which the ring passes as previously described.

In order that pressure may be yieldablyapi, plied to the hook-shaped control member's 5 by the reins I'I which are attached to the rings il,1v the outer limb 6 of each of said control members' maybe 'provided with alongitudinalslot I8 in which the ring 8 is slidable,1seeV Fig. 6. Springs I9 positioned in the .slots I8 provide resilient Vresistance to the sliding lmovement of the 'ring under tension of the reins'I'I and therebyA cushion and absorb shocks to prevent to a large extent their transmission by the controlmembers to the corners of a horses mouth. t H l In use, the headstall I istted on a horses head in theusual away. The cheek straps 4 extend down opposite sides of the .horses head and the outer limbs 6 of the control members 5 contact with and extend along the animals cheeks. The bends of the control members flt at the corners of the horses mouth to which pressure is applied by 'said bends when turninguor reining in.. The

inner limbs 9 of the hooks 5 extend upwardly and rearwardly Within the horses mouth and lie between the cheeks I and the molar teeth 20. If a throat latch 3 be used, any accidental dislodgment of the bridle as a whole is prevented, While the provision of the nose band I2 and chin strap I3 minimize danger of displacement of the hookshaped control members from the horses mouth.

The end portions of the inner limbs 9 of the control members are preferably of flattened formationv so that they lie snugly within the animals mouth between the cheeks I0 and the molar teeth 2U as shown in Fig. '2, and the said inner limbs are slightly curved as shown in Fig. 3 to conform to the contour of the mouth.

other and they are not connected in any Way by cross-pieces such as would be apt to cause dis- `tress and to: impede the movements of the horses tongue by extending transversely through the mouth.

AThe invention has been described with reference to control members 5 of metal or other strong material, with or Without coverings of suitable softY material such as rubber, but it Will beA understood that-in some cases thel said members' 5 may be formed of rubber either with or without a core of suitable 'strengthening material. What I dov claim is:-l I

In a bridle, a control member comprising a hook having an' inner elongated limb adapted to be inserted into an animals mouth and lie between the-animals-cheek'and the adjacent teeth, an outer limb to be positioned against the outer side of the animals cheek, anda bend connecting the inner and outer limbsadapted to contact With the corner of the animals mouth, 'and a boss swivelly'connected tothe outer limb, said boss being formed for the reception of a'rein ring.

ALBERT:EDWARD TILBURN. 

